KB News Desk
CJ CheilJedang is replacing its food-and-bio framework with a three-division structure — lifestyle food, technology materials and core ingredients — as it reallocates capital to higher-growth businesses.
The company said Wednesday the move sharpens strategic focus on higher-growth units while pruning weaker operations, part of a preemptive rebalancing to navigate a fast-changing business environment.
“The objective is to secure future growth opportunities by aligning each business with its core purpose and strengthening execution,” said CEO Yoon Seok-hwan. “We will transform our portfolio into a stronger, more competitive structure and evolve into a global lifestyle leader.”
The lifestyle food division will act as a global K-food hub, spreading Korean food culture worldwide through Bibigo-branded staples like dumplings, rice and kimchi. Gregory Yep, a food and nutrition executive with more than three decades of experience in food science, nutrition and biotechnology, will continue to lead the unit.
The technology materials division is meant to be the company’s innovation engine, spanning food ingredients and industrial materials.
Its flagship businesses include two flavor enhancers — nucleotides, where CJ leads the global market, and TasteNrich, a clean-label natural alternative — along with polyhydroxyalkanoate, a biodegradable plastic gaining traction as a sustainable alternative. Yoon will run the unit himself, alongside his CEO duties.
Core ingredients spans feed amino acids like lysine and tryptophan, staple commodities such as sugar and cooking oil, processed ingredients like oligosaccharides, and specialty ingredients such as allulose. CJ calls it a “key ingredient provider,” seeking synergy-driven profitability and new growth models. Kim Chan-ho, the former CEO of CJ Foodville, will lead the division.
“This restructuring is a fundamental transformation aimed at building world-class competitiveness across each business unit,” a company official said.
